✍️ Con Texto: Sci-Fi meets Latinidad: What Andor gets right
Issue #2 of Con Texto: Our stories deserve depth. Context. Reflection.
Hey mi gente,
Cristina here. I have some contexto for you about “Andor,” the Diego-Luna starring prequel to a prequel that’s got everyone - including non-Star-Wars fanatics - spinning.
The second season premiered in April, promising to complete the timeline between where the first season ends and “Rogue One” begins. Now, way back in 2022, when the show was first dropping, I asked Luna if Cassian Andor is Latino on the show and he wouldn’t say. Which vaguely makes sense because Latinidad is an identity tied to a specific geopolitical reality that doesn’t exist in these sci-fi epics.
Or does it? Because as the second season of “Andor” unfolds, Luna’s character and his partner Bix, played by American/Puerto Rican/Guatemalan-descended actress Adria Arjona, are very Latino-coded.
It’s not just the Mesoamerican iconography or his refugee past—this season, Bix is an undocumented farm worker facing the harsh realities that go with that, including violence and exploitation, a reality for many women in our fields. The backlash to that scene aside, Andor reveals some important truths about what society looks like as it descends into tyranny. And that couldn’t be more relevant today - or frankly more Latinx as our histories, stars, and realities mix in this sci-fi thriller that can’t shake off its Latinidad, no after how hard it pretends to.
“Andor” is political. And Latinx. And that’s what makes it so good.
Now that you’ve got the contexto, let’s get into the cultura. Here's what we’re loving this month.
Con cariño,
Cristina Escobar (Latina Media Co)
Elisabeth Rosario (The Latinx Collective)
🔥 Sin Filtro: Our Monthly Hot Takes
“Bad Bunny and Fuerza Regida just made history—as the first-ever Spanish-language albums to simultaneously sit at Nos. 1 and 2 on the Billboard 200 album chart. The charts finally sound like our playlists. DeBÍ TiRAR Más FOToS is Bad Bunny at his most emotional and experimental, and 111XPANTIA is full corridos tumbados. Reggaetón and regional Mexicano aren’t niche anymore. As a longtime Bad Bunny fan and a growing fan of regional sounds like Grupo Frontera and Peso Pluma, I love this for us.”
–Elisabeth
📖Read more on Los Angeles Times: Bad Bunny, Fuerza Regida make Latin music history on the Billboard 200 by Carlos De Loera
“The algorithm is hilarious sometimes and it definitely did its thing around “Sinners,” the much-praised horror flick by “Black Panther” director Ryan Coogler. On my feed, I didn’t see anybody saying “Sinners” needed more Latinos BUT I did see a lot of people dragging folks for supposedly having that particular take. Mi gente - it should go without saying but Black people are part of our community and when they win, we all win. But also, don’t get tricked by social media feeding you the most inflammatory things! Disinformation is real and here to divide us. Over at Latina Media Co, we published a review of “Sinners,” by Afro-Latina critic DarkSkyLady, breaking down the film’s thoughtful racial analysis. Link below! –Cristina
📖Read more on Latina Media Co: “‘Sinners’ Masterfully Makes White People Ego the Problem” by DarkSkyLady
🎬📺🎙️More Cultura Curated (For Us, By Us)
Refinery29: Rosario horror movie taps into ancestral sacrifice and Palo.
The LA Times: NBC’s ‘Lopez vs. Lopez’ (starring George Lopez) cancellation underscores ongoing broadcast struggles
HipLatina: Real Women Have Curves is making its Broadway debut.
Rolling Stone: 7 Things We Learned From Colombian superstar Karol G’s ‘Tomorrow Was Beautiful’ Documentary
Remezcla: Sundance Film Festival announces CDMX 2025 edition—here’s what we know.
🎙️ Latinx Storyteller Spotlight: Etienne Hernandez Medina on Leading with Purpose
As Founder & CEO of H&M Communications, Etienne Hernandez Medina and his team have spent over two decades shaping the narratives behind some of Hollywood’s biggest campaigns—from Blue Beetle (DC’s first Latino superhero) to major launches with the studios at Amazon, Telemundo, and Warner Bros. In his Latinx Excellence in PR interview for HPRA, Etienne shares how his journey from freelancer to agency leader was rooted in resilience and a deep commitment to authentic, culturally grounded storytelling.
“I didn’t go into this industry with the intention of owning an agency—I was trying to survive in a world where I didn’t always feel seen or valued.”
Read more on LinkedIn (Disclosure: I interviewed Etienne for this series)
Con Texto is a partnership between The Latinx Collective and Latina Media Co. Read past issues on Latina Media Co’s archive.
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